Do you have a geologist (or several) in your family, and you’re not sure what to buy them for Christmas? Good news! The Georneys “What to Buy a Geologist for Christmas” (or Chanukah, Newtonmas, etc.) 2012 holiday gift guide is here.

I also recommend looking through the previous Georneys “What to Buy a Geologist for Christmas” lists:

The eurypterid is the state fossil of New York. You can buy a cuddly version here at the Museum of the Earth online store. My fellow AGU blogger Callan Bentley has one of these for his baby boy Baxter.

Cost: $12

Gift #3: Ocean Sediment Pottery from “The Soft Earth”

A bowl made with sediments from the Bermuda Rise. Picture from “The Soft Earth” website.

“The Soft Earth” is a pottery studio located in Woods Hole, MA (nearby Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution). The studio sells beautiful pottery that is made using ocean sediments from all over the world. You can buy the pottery from the studio’s online store here. This pottery isn’t cheap, but it makes for unique and special gifts that any geologist will treasure!

Cost: Variable, most items are $100 to >$300

Gift #4: Mars Rover Curiosity Hot Wheels Toy

Curiosity… the Hot Wheels version! Picture from Amazon.com.

Hot Wheels has come out with a Mars rover Curiosity toy, which you can buy here. This makes a perfect stocking stuffer for your favorite geologist!

Cost: $10

Gift #5: An Earth Scientist’s Periodic Table of the Elements and Their Ions

Earth Scientist’s Periodic Table of the Elements and their Ions. Picture from here: http://www.gly.uga.edu/railsback/PT.html. Click to enlarge.

For the geochemist in your family, I highly recommend a copy of “An Earth Scientist’s Periodic Table of the Elements and Their Ions.” You can purchase a copy of this specialized periodic table at the Geological Society of America’s online bookstore here.

Cost: $10

Gift #6: Geological Tricorder

Star Trek Geological Tricorder! Picture from Amazon.com.

For the Star Trek fan / geologist in the family, the Star Trek Original Series Geological Tricorder is a must and can be bought from Amazon.com here. This is certainly on my Christmas wish list this year! Actually, I wish I had a real tricorder for my geology research… maybe someone will give me a handheld XRF for Christmas?

Cost: $70

Gift #7: Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry

One of the MSA’s wonderful review books. Picture from the MSA website.

The “Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry” book series published by the Mineralogical Society of America is a very useful resource. Ask the geologists in your family which books in the series they’d like, and then order the books here.

Cost: $30-$50

Gift #8: Geology Jewelry from Surly-Ramics

A fossil-filled bracelet. Picture from the Surly-Ramics Etsy Shop.

Surly-Ramics makes all sorts of fun, often science-themed jewelry… including some pieces with geology themes! Browse the Surly-Ramics Etsy Shop here.

Cost: $18-$50

Gift #9: Cummingtonite T-Shirt

A punny t-shirt. Picture from Zazzle.com.

Geologists love puns. Buy this punny t-shirt here … and dare the geologist in your family to wear it!

Cost: $25

Gift #10: Something From the Geokittehs CafePress Shop

A mug from the Geokittehs CafePress shop.

Update: The Geokittehs shop is now closed… perhaps it will re-open one day when we have more time.

Last but not least, I recommend buying an item from the Geokittehs CafePress Shop that my friend and fellow geoblogger Dana Hunter and I run. The goal of the shop is to raise funds so that Dana can afford a plane ticket to come visit me in South Africa. I need her to come visit so that I can take her on some wonderful georneys here! If we raise more money than we need for Dana’s ticket, we’ll donate the excess earnings to needy animal shelters. Dana is planning some exciting new merchandise for the shop, so check for that over the next few weeks. If you’re not familiar with Geokittehs, set aside a few minutes for procrastination and check out the blog here.

In general, if he is a field geologist, then a geopick, handlens, compass and notebook will be the minimum required. Notebook is probably the most likely to need a replacement, although geopicks get lost with distressing frequency…. Good boots and similar outdoor apparel could also work.

Not so sure what office-bound people could use. Maps for the wall of an area he works in a lot?

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About Evelyn

Evelyn is a geologist, writer, traveler, and aspiring polyglot. She has undergraduate degrees in Earth Science and Arabic Language & Literature from Dartmouth College and a PhD in Marine Geology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology / Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Joint Program. She currently works as an industry geologist.

Note that the views and opinions in this blog are those of Evelyn alone or of commenters. They do not represent Evelyn's employers, her educational institutions (past or present), nor the American Geophysical Union. Evelyn does not blog about her work in industry.

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